Our image of Manmohan Singh as a prime minister has always been governed by two contradictory impulses: the prime minister we wish he might still become, and the prime minister he actually is. Recent opinion polls show relatively high approval ratings for the PM. But it is always difficult to know what to make of this. There was a time, not so long ago, when Vajpayee could do no wrong both in the eyes of the media and opinion polls. But in the end what it all amounted to remains unclear. But putting polls aside, it is fair to say that for the most part, it is the PM’s weaknesses that have dominated public discussion. The sense that he was not his own man, that he could not make his writ run even within the supine corridors of the Congress Party and that he was incapable of making any politically tough decisions, seems to define his leadership. It was an appallingly shameful moment in the history of Parliament when legislators drowned out his statement on the Indo-US nuclear deal. But it was also an emblematic moment in a double sense. It was as if someone was saying, “Who listens to you, Mr Prime Minister?” But it was also a reminder of why people still hitch their wishful star to the PM. He may be weak, but when you contemplate the narcissistic, self-serving and hooligan behaviour of most legislators it is hard not to wish the PM well, if not sympathise with him.

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